Lieutenant-General Takashi Sakai (酒井隆Sakai Takashi, October 18, 1887 – September
30, 1946) was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army during World
War II, known for his role in the Battle of Hong Kong in late 1941.

Biography

Sakai
was born in Kamo District, Hiroshima, now part of Hiroshima city. He was
educated in military preparatory schools in Kobe and Osaka and graduated from
the 20th class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1908, whereupon he was
as assigned to the IJA 28th Infantry Regiment. He graduated from the 28th class
of the Army Staff College.

Career
in China

In
1928, Sakai was stationed in Jinan, Shandong Province, China with the IJA 12th
Infantry Regiment during the Jinan Incident and is believed by some Chinese
historians to be responsible for the murder of Kuomintang army emissaries
during negotiations on May 4, 1928. He was transferred to the Tientsin Garrison
from 1929 to 1932. In 1932, Sakai was promoted to colonel and was assigned to
the 5th Section military intelligence of the 2nd Bureau of the Imperial
Japanese Army General Staff from 1932 to 1934.

As
Chief of Staff of the Japanese China Garrison Army from 1934–1935, Sakai
orchestrated a series of armed conflicts, which resulted in an armistice with
the Chinese government which effectively gave Japan control of Hebei Province.
He became commander of the IJA 23rd Infantry Regiment in 1936. Sakai was
promoted to major general in 1937 and was appointed commander of the IJA 28th
Infantry Brigade. He became a lieutenant general in 1939, and was assigned to
the Coordination Bureau, Asia Development Group, Mengjiang Board from 1939 to
1940. He was also assigned to the Mongolia Garrison Army at this time.

Recalled
to Japan in 1940, Sakai was briefly appointed commander of the Imperial Guards
Depot Division.

World
War II

Sakai
was commander of the IJA 23rd Army stationed in Canton in November 1941. He was
ordered to use the IJA 38th Division, which was normally under the Southern
Expeditionary Army Group to capture Hong Kong, and was given a 10 day time
limit.

On
December 8, 1941, a few hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese forces
commanded by Sakai, and his Chief of Staff Tadamichi Kuribayashi, invaded Hong
Kong. However, the subsequent Battle of Hong Kong did not proceed as quickly or
as smoothly as Lieutenant-General Sakai had planned, and he was forced to
request an extension to his deadline. Sir Mark Young, the Governor of Hong Kong,
surrendered all British forces in Hong Kong on Christmas Day, after 18 days of
fighting. Lt.-Gen. Sakai’s frustrations over the unexpectedly strong British
resistance may have been reflected by the extreme brutality which characterized
the campaign and subsequent occupation.

Sakai
served as Japanese Governor of Hong Kong until February 20, 1942. He was
recalled to Japan, and retired from active service in 1943.

After
the end of the war, Sakai was accused of war crimes at the Chinese War Crimes Military
Tribunal of the Ministry of National Defense in Nanking, found guilty and
sentenced to death on August 27, 1946. Sakai was executed by firing squad on
September 30.

SACRAMENTO – Today, Governor Jerry Brown signed Senator Leland Yee’s
Senate Bill 9 – the Fair Sentencing for Youth Act – which will give youth
serving life without parole an opportunity to earn a second chance.

Approximately 300 youth offenders have been sentenced to die in California’s
prisons for crimes committed when they were teenagers. SB 9 will give some
youth sentenced to life without parole (LWOP) a chance to earn parole after
serving at least 25 years in prison.

“I commend Governor Brown for having the courage, understanding, and leadership
to sign SB 9,” said Yee, who is a child psychologist. “The Governor’s signature
of SB 9 is emotional for both the supporters and the opposition, but I am proud
that today California said we believe all kids, even those we had given up on
in the past, are deserving of a second chance.”

The United States is the only country in the world where people who were under
the age of 18 at the time of their crime serve sentences of life without
parole.

Under Senate Bill 9, courts could review cases of juveniles sentenced to life
without parole after 15 years, potentially allowing some individuals to receive
a new minimum sentence of 25 years to life. The bill would require the offender
to show remorse and be working towards rehabilitation in order to submit a
petition for consideration of the new sentence.

“SB 9 is not a get-out-of-jail-free card; it is an incredibly modest proposal
that respects victims, international law, and the fact that children have a
greater capacity for rehabilitation than adults,” said Yee. “The neuroscience
is clear – brain maturation continues well through adolescence and thus impulse
control, planning, and critical thinking skills are not yet fully developed. SB
9 reflects that science and provides the opportunity for compassion and
rehabilitation that we should exercise with minors.”

“SB 9 becoming law speaks volumes for who we are as a society – that we value
our children,” said Yee.

Supporters of SB 9 included child advocates, mental health experts, medical
organizations, faith communities, and civil rights groups. In recent weeks, SB
9 also gained high level support from the Democratic Leader of the US House of
Representatives Nancy Pelosi and former Republican Speaker of the House Newt
Gingrich, as well as a number of law enforcement leaders including San
Francisco’s police chief, sheriff, and district attorney.

“In California, a sentence of life without parole is a sentence to die in
prison,” said Elizabeth Calvin, children’s rights advocate at Human Rights
Watch. “Teenagers are still developing. No one – not a judge, a psychologist,
or a doctor – can look at a sixteen year old and be sure how that young person
will turn out as an adult. It makes sense to re-examine these cases when the
individual has grown up and becomes an adult. There’s no question that we can
keep the public safe without locking youth up forever for crimes committed when
they were still considered too young to have the judgment to vote or drive.”

In California, prosecutors and judges have some discretion on whether to pursue
LWOP for juveniles. However, several cases call such discretion into question.

One such case involves Christian Bracamontes, who was 16 and had never before
been in trouble with the law. One day when Christian’s friend said, “Hey do you
want to rob this guy?” Christian replied in what can only be described as a
quintessential adolescent response, “I don’t care.” When the victim refused to
comply with his friend’s demand, Christian said he thought the bluff was
called, and he remembered turning away and bending down to pick up his bike and
leave, when he heard a gunshot.

The prosecutor offered a lower sentence, but in Christian’s teenage mind he
could not see how he would be responsible for the other person’s actions and he
turned down that deal. The DA was quoted in the newspaper as saying, “It’s hard
for teenagers to understand concepts like aiding and abetting.” Christian was
found guilty of first degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without
parole.

A report published by Human Rights Watch found that in many cases where juveniles
were prosecuted with an adult for the same offense, the youth received heavier
sentences than their adult codefendants.

Despite popular belief to the contrary, Human Rights Watch found that life
without parole is not reserved for children who commit the worst crimes or who
show signs of being irredeemable criminals. Nationally, it is estimated that
59% of youth sentenced to life without parole had no prior criminal
convictions. Forty-five percent of California youth sentenced to life without
parole for involvement in a murder did not actually kill the victim. Many were
convicted of felony murder, or for aiding and abetting the murder, because they
acted as lookouts or were participating in another felony, such as a robbery,
when the murder took place.

One prosecutor who has publically supported Yee’s bill, San Francisco District
Attorney George Gascón said, “I recognize the ability of young people to reform
their behavior and be rehabilitated as they mature. SB 9 holds youth
responsible for their actions. It creates a rigorous system of checks and
balances, and provides a limited chance for young offenders to prove they have
changed – both to a judge and to a parole board.”

California also has the worst record in the nation for racial disparity in the
imposition of life without parole for juveniles. African American youth are
serving the sentence at a rate that is eighteen times higher than the rate for
white youth, and the rate for Latino youth is five times higher.

Each new youth offender given this sentence will cost the state upwards of $2.5
million. To continue incarcerating the current population of youth offenders
already sentenced to life without parole until their deaths in prison will cost
the state close to $700 million.

###

Contact:
Adam J. Keigwin,
(916) 651-4008

- See more at:
http://sd08.senate.ca.gov/news/2012-09-30-california-ends-%E2%80%98life-without-possibility-parole-kids#sthash.CHFnyahX.dpuf

On
this date, September 30, 2011, an Islamic Militant, Anwar Al-Awlaki was killed
by two predator drones in Yemen. Please go to this
previous blog post to learn more about this terrorist and this blog post to
hear an op-ed about him.